The Motor Sports Club of Chikmagalur will conduct the Rally of Chikmagalur, the fourth round of the MRF MOGRIP FMSCI National Rally Championship 2W, in Chikmagalur on October 31 and November 1. The event is making a comeback to coffee country after a gap of seven years. The previous rounds of the 2015 Championship were held in Nashik, Coimbatore and Hyderabad. A total of 42 entries have been received.
One of the top names is Aravind KP (Mangalore), representing Team TVS Racing. He is also leading the Championship points standings. The other notable names are R Nataraj (Bangalore, Team TVS Racing), and Naresh VS (Bangalore, Team Hero) The other names to look out for are Venu Ramesh Kumar from Coimbatore and riding in Group B, Akash Aithal from Bangalore and riding a Royal Enfield Bullet and Vishwas SD from Bangalore and riding in Group A.
Mumbai’s Siana is the sole lady competitor and will ride the Mahindra Rodeo scooter. In the Star of Chikmagalur class, Francis, Girish, Salman Khan, Jeevan, Pooresh and Chetan are the ones to watch.
The Rally will cover a distance of about 70Km, out of which 50Km will be the special stage distance. The Rally will be predominantly on dirt, with about five per cent of tarmac. There will be three sections in the stages (two of 21Km and one 9Km approximately), which will be run inside the Kuvempu PG Centre and Police Training Centre. The Kodava Samaja will be the Rally Headquarters and the ceremonial start will be at 5:30 pm on October 31.
The flag-off will be at the Kodava Samaja and will be done by MLA CT Ravi. After Karnataka formation day (Kannada Rajyotsava) celebrations, the Rally will start from Anand Farm, which is very close to the stages, at 9:30 am on November 1. The Rally will end at 2:00 pm at the Pearls Club in Kadur and the prize distribution will be held thereafter.
Farooq Ahmed, Clerk of the Course, said: “This rally is a rehearsal for the four-wheeler Asia Cup Rally that is coming up in Chikmagalur in December. Part of the stages for the Asia Cup will also be used for this weekend’s rally and it will be a test for us. “All safety precautions have been taken. Trauma ambulances on the stages are present,” he added. The district hospitals in Birur and Kadur and private hospitals have been requested to be on standby. A huge turnout is expected and will be monitored by the marshals, Home Guards and Police. The Championship is being sponsored by MRF MOGRIP and Adventure Trails, from Chikmagalur, is another sponsor
